Welcome to the Queendom

Chapter Forty-Nine

"Remember at that football game sophomore year when Jackson tackled the other player so hard, one of his teeth flew out?" Kelsey recalled.
Dean laughed. "He was having a bad day and then that dude had to go off and run his mouth," he added. "But I did feel sorry for him."
"I had never seen Jackson that aggressive before," Kelsey stated. "Even during a football game."
I stifled a yawn as I sat idly by as they remembered high school memories. Not once had either of them spoken to me since we stepped through the diner. I stirred my straw in my glass of lemonade.
"Why weren't you on the football team?" Kelsey wondered. "You have the muscles for it even back then." She squeezed his bicep.
Dean shrugged. "I was never into that stuff, you know? I'm the polar opposite of Jackson."
"Well, you would've made a great player," Kelsey said. "I would've loved cheering for you."
Dean's face flushed for the second time today. I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and texted Seth, Save me!
What's wrong? he texted back almost immediately.
I'll explain when you get here, I replied. Just get down here.
And then I texted him the directions before putting my phone away.
"So, Chelsea," Kelsey started to say. "How long have you known, Jonathan?"
"About a month and a half," I answered.
"And you guys are dating already?" she questioned. "You work fast, Jon."
I rolled my eyes.
"Jonathan was always cute," Kelsey said. "Girls were always jumping at him even if he didn't notice. I guess I was trying to play hard to get."
"Interesting," I replied in monotone. I could really not care less.
"But he has you now," she sighed. "You're a very lucky girl. How old are you?"
"25," I replied in the same flat, deadpan voice.
"She's three years younger than you, Jon," she said in a playful scolding voice. "You like them young."
"3 years isn't even that much," I told her irritably.
Dean nudged his leg with mine. "Stop," he mouthed to me. "You're being rude."
My phone vibrated. I'm outside-Seth.
"I gotta go," I stated gratefully as I stood.
Kelsey seemed happy to be rid of me. The feeling was mutual.
"Where're you going?" Dean asked.
"I'm supposed to be helping Seth with something," I lied, inching my way to the door. "I'll talk to you at the arena."
And then I was gone without even a kiss goodbye. We still had four more hours before heading over to the Baltimore Arena, but I didn't care. I quickly slipped inside Seth's car with a gratifying sigh.
"What's going on?" Seth asked as he pulled away from the curb.
"A female friend from high school is what's going on," I explained. "He used to have a crush on her."
"Sounds like someone's jealous," Seth teased.
"Not jealous," I corrected matter-of-factly. "Just irritated that he's not noticing that she's throwing herself at him, flirting up a storm."
"Oh," Seth said. "It's that type of female friend." He gave me a sympathetic look. "But, hey look, don't worry about her, okay? Dean loves you. You can see it every time he looks at you. He doesn't want her. She's old news."
That made me feel a little better but not by much. I was still annoyed and was starting to get a massive headache.

"Why'd you run off like that?" Dean asked me thirty minutes before the start of the show, an hour after Seth and I showed up.
"What do you mean?" I questioned. "I told you I had to help Seth out with something?"
"That's crap, Chels," he stated.
"How is that crap?" I asked.
"Because I just asked Seth what that something was and he was like a deer in headlights. Don't ask Seth to lie for you on the spot. He needs time to sound convincing."
I sighed. "What's going on?"
"Nothing," I answered.
"This is about Kelsey, isn't it?" he questioned though he already knew-or at least assumed-the answer. "You don't need to feel threatened by her."
"I don't feel threatened," I protested. "I'm just irritated that some chick-who might I add, don't even know-is flirting my boyfriend into oblivion and he doesn't notice."
"She's flirtatious! That's her personality," he explained as if that justified her actions within the hour that I spent with her. "Babe-"
"Don't," I interrupted, "'babe' me. I'm not a child, Dean. In case you haven't noticed, I'm a girl. I know how girls act, I know they're tells, I know the lengths they go to to mess up another girl's relationship. It starts off with the flirting. Next thing you know, you're investing all of your time with her. Then you're gonna be scolding me for being jealous even when I have a right to, then, before I can even blink you're breaking up with me over text message."
"I may be mean and heartless at times," he said. "But I would never break up with someone through the phone."
I just shrugged.
"Besides, Kelsey's 'intentions' are innocent. Why would she want to steal me away from you?"
"Because most girls want a guy they can't have," I answered. "I don't know why that is, but it's true. When a girl sees a guy with a girlfriend they're intent on getting him. Kelsey turn you down when you asked her to the dance but now that she sees you've move on, she wants your attention back on her."
Dean casted his eyes downward, considering this. "I still think you're wrong," he whispered. "I know her."
"Good," I stated. "Because I have no idea who you are."
I stomped out of the locker room, slamming the door behind me. I stayed there for a second, running my fingers through my hair. I heard shuffling in the room, but not once did I hear his footsteps approach the door. I scoffed, shaking my head. "Unbelievable," I whispered.
I heard chuckling and looked up. Bray Wyatt, Luke Harper, and Erick Rowan stood before me, evil smiles making the skin around their eyes crinkle. Bray slowly inched toward me, clamping down hard on my wrist.
"I think we should take a field trip, Sister Abigail," he told me.
"Dean!"